Bed-bottom.



No. 693,594. Patnled Feb. I8, |902.

0. G. FRANKS.

ABED B'UTTOII. (Application mad Apr. 29, 1901*.) Y (NOHCIBL) ZSheets-Sheet 1.

Patented Feb. la; |902. o. G. rnAuxs. y

B E D B 0 T T0 M (Appucat'ion ma Ap. 29, 1901.)

unam-sheet 2.

(No Mudel.)

Artnr Fries.

ORRIN G. FRANKS, OF BUFFALO, NEI/V YORK.

BED-BOTTOM.

SEECIFIGATGN forming part of Letters Patent No. 698,594, dated February 18, 1902.

Application filed April 29.1901. Serial No. 57,855. (N model-l To all wko/1t it may concern:

Beit known thatI, ORRIN G. FnANKs, acitizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bed-Bottoms; and I doliereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invent-ion, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to characters of reference marked thereon, which form a partof this specica tion.

My 'invention relates particularly to the frames of bed-bottoms embodying a stretched fabric forming the surface of the bed-bottom.

The object of the invention is to produce a frame which may be manufactured at a low cost and which shall be light and yet possess strength and durability.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis an elevation of a portion of the end of a bedbottom embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the portion of the bed-bottom shown by Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a vertical section in the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a vertical section in the line 4 4; of Fig. l. Fig. 5 is a perspective of a reinforcing-piece which is placed within the end rail. Fig. 6 isa perspective of a piece used for closing the ends of the end rails. Fig. is a side and end elevation of a hollow cylinder used as a part of the riser-block oreonnecting member used to join the end and side rails. Fig. S is a perspective of a device for reinforcing the side rail and closing the end of said rail. Fig. 9 is a plan of the construction shown by Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. IO is a horizontal section on line l0 IO of Fig. 2. Figs. ll and l2 are detail views of parts of the riser-block. Figs. 13, 14, and l are views of a modilication in which the riser-block is modified into a mere fastention of such frames is well understood by those familiar with this art, l deem it unnecessary to add to the drawings a view of such a frame in its entirety. The drawings illustrate the construction at one corner of such a frame, and it is to be understood that the remaining three corners may be identical with the one shown.

O is a connecting member or riser-block, which is placed between the side rail A and the end rail B for the purpose of connecting the end rail and side rail and giving suitable elevation to the end rail. A bolt .D extends through the end rail, riser-block, and side rail and binds these parts together. In addition to the bolt D two bolts E E extend through the end rail and through the upper portion of the connecting member or riser-block and serve the double purpose of binding the front portion of the end rail to the riser-block and clamping the fabric of the bed-bottom to the end rail. i

All the parts, as illustrated by the drawings, are made of sheet metal, preferably relatively thin sheet-steel. Y

The side rail A is composed of the upper web A' and the two side webs A2, the latter having lateral flanges a2, and the bottom A3 having folded edges a3, extending around the flanges a2. The main portion of the web AS may extend above the lower edges of the webs A2, as shown in the drawings. The folds d3 may be suitably pressed into engagement with the lateral edges a2, or these parts may be soldered or brazed to each other.

The riser-block C is preferably a composite structure consisting of three pieces, the first of which is the tubular piece C', which is shown in elevation in Figs. l, 2, and 7, in vertical section in Figs. 3 and t, and in transverse section in Fig. l0. One end of said tube rests upon the upper web of the rail A and the other end rests against the lower face of the end rail. Said riser-block consists, further, of two plates O2, which are identical, excepting that the parts of one are reversed with reference tothe similar parts of the other, so that the two parts constitute a right-hand and left-hand member of the complete block. These parts C2 are made by iirst stamping out of sheet metal blanks like that shown by Fie. 1l. The portion l of each such blank is then bent laterally to form the wing O3, the portion 3 is bent laterally to form the foot O4, the width of the lower face of the foot C4 be- IOO ing equal to one-half of the width of the upper face of the side rail, the portion tis bent downward to form the vertical flange C5, and the front end 5 of the blank is bent downward to form the lug CG. The opening G in the blank is of proper width and length to form the opening C7 to receive the tube C when said plate is put into position upon the side rail, with the fiange C5 bearing against the lateral face of the side rail and the opposite portion of said plate reaching to the middle of the upper face of the said side rail. When the two plates C2 are brought into position, the holes CS, extending transversely through said plates, will register and may receive rivets C4 for binding said plates rigidly together. The lugs C6 at the front ends of the plates C2 extend into a slot ct in the upper web of the side rail, said slot being pref erably just large enough to receive said lugs, to the end that said lugs and the adjacent portion of the riser-block may be held against horizontal movement. Since the plates C2 are joined rigidly by said rivets and said iianges C5 bear against the opposite sides of the side rail, it follows that said tianges prevent lateral-movement of the rear portion of the riser-block. I

It will be observed that the one form of blank will answer for making plates C2 in right or left hand form, the form being varied by reversing the direction of` the parts in bending the blanks.

The body of theend rail B consists of a singie piece of sheet metal folded upon itself' to form the AIiattened bottom B', aback B2, and a Vtop B3. The edge of the top is bent downward to form a flange B4 and the edge'of the bottom is bent upward to form a flange B5, substantially perpendicular to the bottom B' lapping over the' flange B4. The end edge of the bed bottom fabricF extends between the fianges B5 and B4 and beneath the latter. A bolt E extends through the top B3 and the bottom B adjacent to said flanges and presses the flange B4 downward,so as tocompress the fabric F between said flanges and between said fiange B4 and said bottom B. Said end rail virtually forms 'a clamp which grips or clamps the edge ofthe fabric when the bolts E are tightened, the fabric being folded on two lines-to wit, along the edge of the flange B5 and along the edge of the flange B4. Said bolts E also extend through vholes c3 in the wings C3' of the plates C2, whereby said riser-block is firmly bound to ,the lfront portion of the end rail. Said boltsl aid in preventing the end rail from turning in a horizontal plane upon the block. That the riser-block is prevented from turning similarly upon the side rail by means of the lugs C and the flanges C5 has already been explained.

An end-closer B6 (shown in perspective by Fig. 6 and in cross-section in Fig. 3) is used for closing the end of the rail B.v Saidendcloser consists of the upright portion B7 and `the two wings B8, extending horizontally from eeasefi the horizontal margins of said upright portion. The area of said upright portion B7 conforms in size and shape to the internal cross-sectional area of the rail B, oneend of the portion B'7 being rounded to conform to the interior of the back of the rail. With the win gs B8 in advance said closer is pushed into the end of the rail until the portion B7 and the end of the rail are approximately flush. The wings B8 may be divergent, so that they must be sprung toward each other for insertion, to the end that they may after insertion beatl against the inner faces of the walls of the rail sufficiently to retain the closer in place, or the closer may be inserted before the bolts D and E are tightened.

The bolt D extends through the end rail B and through the tube C of the riser-block and through the side rail. At the lower end of said bolt there is a nut D. Vhen said nut is drawn, the strain of the bolt tends to draw the end rail and the side rail toward each other. yThe riser-block C tends to keep said rails apart. The principal resistance offered by the riser-block comes from the tube C'. The wall of said tube is relatively thick, and its ends rest directly upon the upper face of the side rail and against the lower face of the end rail. To keep the end rail from being compressed by the action of said bolt, a reinforcing-piece H (illustrated by Fig. 5) is placed within said rail, with its faces in the vertical position, the height of said reinforcing-piece being sufficient to till the space between the upper and lower walls of the end rail, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. It is obvious that the reinforcing-piece H might be a tube similar to the tube C; but I prefer the piece H because it has a more extended bearing upon the walls of the end rail and tends to prevent the bending of such walls when the strain is in a plane which is vertical and parallel to the end rail. To prevent the compression or collapsing of the said rail A, a tube I, similar to the tube C', is placed around the boltvD within said side rail, the length of said tube being sufficient to make contact with the upper and lower webs of the side rail. 'While said tube I may be a distinct piece, I prefer to unite it with another piece which shall serve to close the adjacent end of the side rail. Said end-closer consists of the vertical end piece I and the horizontal wings 12. The tube I extends through the wings I2 at such distance from the end piece I as to bring the latter fiush with the end of the side rail when Ysaid end-closer has been inserted properly to allow the bolt D to extend through the Jtube I. It will be observed that under this construction the end-closerseryes as a con venient means for putting the tube I into proper location and position within said side rail and that the bolt D is made to serve as a means for fastening the end-closer within the side rail. It will be understood that the side rail may be solid. In Figs. 13, 14, and 15, K is such a rail.

IIO

IVhen it is not desired to elevate the end rail, the connecting member or riser-block C may be so modified as to be only as high as the thickness of the sheet metal from which it is made. Such a member is indicated by L in Figs. 13, 14, and 15. Said member L consists of a single piece extending entirely across the side rail. At its rea-r end it has flanges L', corresponding to the flanges C5, and at its front it has a single lug L2, extending into a hole 7e and corresponding to the two lugs CG on the pair of plates C2. Horizontal wings or lobes L3 have holes L4, corresponding to the holes cs of the plates C2. A hole L5 receives the bolt I). The operation of this modification will be readily understood from the drawings.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of an end rail consisting of a piece of sheet metal folded upon itself and having its bottom flattened and having its edges bent to form overlapping flanges substantially perpendicular to said bottom, and bolts for forcing the upper and lower walls of said rail toward each other, substantially as described.

2. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of an end rail consisting of a piece of sheet metal folded upon itself and having its edges bent to form overlapping anges, bolts for forcing the upper and lower walls of said rail toward each other, and end-closers inserted into the ends of said rail, substantially as described.

8. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of an end rail consisting of a piece of sheet metal folded upon itself and having its edges bent to form overlapping fianges, bolts for forcing the upper and lower walls of said rail toward each other, and sheet-metal endclosers inserted into the ends of said rail, substantially as described.

4. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of an end rail consisting of a piece of sheet metal folded upon itself and having its edges bent to form overlapping flanges, bolts for forcing the upper and lower walls of said rail toward each other, and sheet-metal endclosers consisting of an upright portion and horizontal wings extending laterally from the edges of said upright portion, substantially as described.

5. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of an end rail consisting of a piece of sheet metal folded upon itself and having its edges bent to form overlapping flanges, bolts for forcing the upper and lower walls of said rail toward each other, and end-closers having an upright portion rounded at one end and provided with lateral wings, substantially as described.

6. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination with a side rail and an end rail, of a connecting member interposed between said side rail and end rail and having a horizontal portion resting on said side rail, flanges extending downward over the sides of said side rail, and

lugs extending into the upper face of said side rail, substantially as described.

7. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of a side rail, an end rail, and a connecting member interposed between said side rail and said end rail and having a horizontal portion resting on said side rail, flanges `extending down the sides of said side rail, and horizontal wings having holes for receiving bolts, substantially as described.

S. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of a side rail, an end rail, and a connecting member interposed between said rails and having a flat portion resting upon said side rail, anges extending downward over the sides of said side rail, wings having holes for receiving bolts, and lugs extending into the upper face of the side rail, substantially as described.

9. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of a side rail, an end rail, and a connecting member interposed between said rails and having a horizontal portion extending across said side rail and having lateral flanges extending downward over the sides of said side rail, and lugs extending into the upper face of the side rail, and a central opening, and a bolt extending through said rails and through said opening, substantiallyT as described.

10. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of a side rail, an end rail, and a composite connecting member interposed between said rails and having a horizontal portion extending across the upper face of the side rail and having flanges extending downward over the sides of the side rail, and havinglugs extending into the upper face of the side rail, substantially as described.

11. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of aside rail, an end rail, and a composite connectin g member interposed between said side rail and said end rail and havinga horizontal portion resting on said side rail, iianges extending down the sides of said side rail, and horizontal wings having holes for receiving bolts, substantially as described. f

12. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination with the side rail and end rail of acompositer connecting member interposed between said rails and having a fiat portion. resting upon said side rail, anges extending downward over the sides of said side rail, wings having holes for receiving bolts, and lugs extending into the upper face of the side rail, substantially as described.

13. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination with a side rail and an end rail, of a composite connecting member interposed between said rails and having a horizontal portion extending across said side rail and having lateral iianges extending downward over the sides of said side rail, and lugs extending into the upper face of the side rail, and a central opening, and av bolt extending through said rails and through said opening, substantially as described.

14. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination IOO IIO

with a side rail and an end rail, of a sheetmetal connecting member interposed between said rails and having a horizontal portion extending across the upper face of the side rail, and having wings provided with holes for receiving bolts, substantially as described.

15. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination with a side rail andan end rail, of a sheetmetal connecting member interposed between said rails and extending horizontally across the upper face of the side rail and having Wings with holes for receiving bolts, and having a vertical opening extending through the body of said member, and a bolt extending through said rails and member, substantially as described.

16. A blank for forming connecting members for bed-bottom frames, substantially as herein described, said blank consisting of sheet metal, and having a portion adapted to be bent to form a fiange to extend over the side of the side rail and having another portion adapted to become a foot and having another portion adapted to become a wing, and having an aperture for receiving a bolt, and having another portion adapted to be bent to constitute a lug to extend into the upper face of the side rail,substantially as described.

17. A blank for forming connecting members for bed-bottom frames, substantially as herein described, said blank consisting of a plate of sheet metal comprising the parallel portions, 1, 2, 3, and 4, and an end portion, Y6, and having suitable apertures for bolts or rivets, substantially as described.

18. A blank for forming connecting members for bed-bottom frames, substantially as herein described, said blank consisting of a plate of sheet metal comprising the parallel portions, 1, 2, 3, and 4, and having suitable substantially circular apertures forreceiving bolts or rivets, and having an elongated aperture extending across the part, 2, substantially as described.

19. A blank for forming connecting members for bed-bottom frames, substantially as herein described, said blank consisting of a plate of sheet metal comprising the parallel portions l, 2, 3, 4, and an end portion, 5, and having suitable substantially circular apertures for receiving bolts or rivets, and having an elongated aperture extending across the part, 2, substantially as described.

20. A connecting member for a bed-bottom frame, said member comprising two pieces having suitably-joined upright portions, C2, horizontal portions, C4, and vertical flanges, C5, extending downward over the portions, C4, and having lateral wings, C3, and depending lugs, C6, substantially as described.

21. A connecting member for a bed-bottom frame, said member comprising two pieces having suitably-joined upright portions, C2, horizontal portions, C4, and vertical fianges, C5, extending downward from the portions, C4, and 4having lateral wings provided with vertical bolt-holes,substantiall y as described.

ticalportion rising from said foot portion,and.

lateral Wings at the upper portion of said vertical portion, and an opening extending cenn trally through said connecting member, substantially as described.

23. In abcd-bottom frame, a composite metallic connecting member consisting of a vertical tube and a pair of pieces each having a vertical portion and an upper and a lower lateral portion, substantially as described.

2i. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination with aside rail and an end rail, of a connecting memberlocated between said side rail and saidendrail,andhavinglateral flanges extenda ing downward overthe sides of said side rail, and having an upright portion, and lateral wings at the top of said upright portion, and having a central opening extending through said connecting member and a tubular part seated within said opening, and a bolt extending through said rails and said tubular part, substantially as described.

25. In a bed-bottom frame, a rail consisting of two pieces of sheet metal, one ot said pieces forming the top and sides of said rail and having at its lower edges lateral ianges, and

another piece of sheet metal constituting the bottom of said rail and extending upward between said sides and having lateral folded flanges extending around and over the firstmentioned iianges, substantially as described.

26. In a bed-bottom frame, a rail consisting of two pieces of sheet metal, one of said pieces forming the top and sides of said rail and having at its lower edges lateral ianges, and another piece of sheet metal constituting the bottom of said rail and having lateral folded flanges extending around and over the firstmentioned flanges, and said top and bottom having each a bolt-hole in the same vertical line, a Vertical reinforcing-tube within said rail and in line with said hole, substantially as described. A

27. In a bed-bottom frame, a rail consisting of two pieces of sheet metal, one of said pieces forming the top and sides of said rail and having at its lower edges lateral flanges, and another piece of sheet metal constituting the bottom of said rail and having lateral folded fianges extending around and'over the firstmentioned fianges, saidtop and bottom having each a bolt-hole in the same vertical line and a vertical reinforcing-tube located within said rail in line with said holes and an end-closer, substantially as described.

2S. In a bed-bottom frame, a rail consisting of two pieces of sheet metal, one of said pieces forming the top and sides of said rail and having at its lower edges lateral flanges, and another piece of sheet metal constituting the bottom of said rail and having lateral folded anges extending around and over the irstmentioned flanges, said top and bottom having each a bolt-hole in the same vertical line IOO IIO

IZO

and a vertical reinforcing-tube and an endcloser combined with said reinforcing-tube, substantially as described.

29. In abed-bottom frame, the combination with a hollow rail consisting of suitablyjoined, longitudinally-extending pieces of sheet metal and having bolt-holes located one above the other, of a Vertical reinforcin g-tube located transverselygwithin said rail in line with said holes, substantially as described.

30. In abed-bottom frame, the combination with a hollow rail consisting of suitablyjoined, longtudinally-extending pieces of sheet metal and having bolt-holes located one above the other, of a vertical reinforcing tube located within said rail in line with said holes and an end-closer combined with said tube, substantially as described.

81. In abed-bottom frame, the combination with an end-closer comprising the parts, I', I2,

I2, of a reinforcing-tube, I, substantially as described.

32. In a bed-bottom frame, the combination of a hollow side rail, a reinforcing-tube located transversely Within said rail, a connecting member comprising a reinforcing-tube, an end rail, and a bolt extending through said end rail and said reinforcing-tubes, substantially as described.

33. In a bed-bottom frame, a sheet-metal rail, a bolt, D, extending through said rail, and a reinforcing-piece, H, located lengthwise Within said rail and extending around said bolt, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature, in presence of two witnesses, this 22d day of April, 1901.

ORRIN G. FRANKS.

Vitnesses:

FRANCIS K. KERNAW, MAULSBY KIMBALL. 

